Basic Chunky Tomato Sauce (for canning)

Ingredients

2 pecks canning tomatoes (15 lb. each)

8 c. onions, chopped

24 cloves garlic, minced (about 2 bulbs)

6 c. red wine

fresh basil, chopped

fresh parsley, chopped

2 tbsp. pickling salt

4 tsp. brown sugar

6 little cans tomato paste

Directions

Blanch, peel, core, and chop tomatoes. Add tomatoes and all other ingredients to the pot, and simmer for many hours. If you get impatient, add more paste. Otherwise, cook down sauce to desired consistency. Process 40 minutes in a hot water bath, 20 minutes in a pressure canner. 

Peeling and dicing will take an hour per person. All other preparations take about an hour.  

Garlic Scape & Arugula Pesto

Ingredients
2 c. arugula, packed tightly
2 c. garlic scapes, cut into 2-inch pieces and packed loosely
2 tbsp. parmesan, preferably freshly grated
¾ c. olive oil
¼ tsp. salt

Directions
Process all ingredients except oil in food processor, until coarsely chopped. Then, slowly add the olive oil as you continue to process the pesto. May be frozen up to a year.

Butter Cookies ("Thumbprints")

Ingredients

1 lb. butter
1 c. sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
4 c. flour

Directions
Cream sugar, butter, egg and vanilla. Slowly add the flour. Form into cookies and bake on 350 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes on an ungreased cookie sheet. For thumbprints, press your thumb into the formed cookies before baking and drop in a teaspoon of preserves.

Savory Peach Butter

You simply must wait until peaches are in season here. Serve with warmed brie and a baguette.

Ingredients

3-1/2 lbs. peaches, peeled and pureed

2 tbsp. lemon juice

1/4 c. packed thyme

1 tsp. black pepper, freshly ground

1 pkg. no sugar pectin

sugar to taste

Directions

Add thyme, black pepper, pureed peaches and lemon juice to a pot and bring to a full, rolling boil. Add the pectin, bring to a boil, and cook for one minute. Then add sugar to taste. The pectin does not require sugar to set, so you can add as much or as little as you want. At the wedding, we wanted the peach butter to be pretty savory, so we didn't add a whole lot of sugar. Boil for one more minute and add to clean, warm jars. Process for 10 minutes in a canner.

Makes a few pints.

Red Onion Marmalade

Serve with a special blue cheese and pumpernickel. Yum!

Ingredients

1-1/2 c. red onion, halved and thinly sliced

1/2 c. dried cranberries, finely chopped

1/4 c. brown sugar, lightly packed

1/4 c. cider vinegar

2 tsp. orange zest, grated

3 c. unsweetened apple juice

1 pkg. regular powdered fruit pectin

4 c. granulated sugar

Directions

Prepare canner, jars and lids. In a skillet, over medium heat, combine red onion, cranberries, brown sugar and vinegar. Cook, stirring, until onion is transparent, about 10 minutes.

In a large, deep stainless steel saucepan, combine cooked onion mixture, orange zest, and apple juice. Whisk in pectin until dissolved. Bring to a rolling boil over high heat, stirring frequently. Add sugar all at once and return to a full rolling boil, stirring constantly. Boil hard for one minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and skim off foam.

Ladle hot marmalade into hot jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles with small rubber spatula and adjust headspace, as necessary. Wipe rim, center lid on jar, and screw band down until resistance is met, then increase to fingertip-tight.

Place jars in canner, ensuring they are completely covered with water. Bring to a boil and process for 15 minutes. Remove canner lid. Wait five minutes, then remove jars, cool and store (without bands).

Makes about five 8-oz. jars.